1. The document distinguishes between two types of information sources: published works and unpublished works. 2. Published works include government publications, journals, newspapers, monographs, reference works, audio/visual media, and electronic media. 3. Unpublished works include human sources, dissertations/theses, reports, grey literature, information on the internet, and email.

1. Week 2
Types of Information
Sources

2. Learning Outcome
1. Distinguish types of texts and reading
techniques

3. TYPES OF INFORMATION
SOURCES
1. Published works
2. Unpublished works

4. Published Works
•Government publications
•Journals
•Newspapers
•Monographs and textbooks
•Reference works
•Audio Visual
•Electronic media

5. Government publications
Official publication issued by a government
publishing facility
Examples:
•Statutes
•Acts
•Government gazette
•Debates of parliament (Hansard)

6. Journals
• A journal is a periodical, which generally contains material
relating to research
• Appears at regularintervals – weekly, monthly, quarterly
• Content varies and can include editorials, articles, book
reviews, etc
• They do not necessarily have the word “journal”in the
title, e.g.
• SouthAfricanmedical journal
• New scientist

7. Newspapers
• Newspapers: issued eitherdaily, weekly
ormonthly
• Contain news, opinions, advertisements
and othersubjects related to current
affairs
• South African newspaperarticles indexed
by SAMedia and available forsearching
underDatabases

8. Textbooks / Monographs
Publications that deal
comprehensively with a specific
subject

9. Reference Works
• Dictionaries (e . g . Do rlands m e dicaldictio nary, O xfo rd e ng lish
dictio nary, Dictio nary o f m e dicalsyndro m e s)
• Encylopaedias (e . g . Encyclo pae dia o f bio e thics, Encyclo pae dia o f
o ccupatio nalhe alth and safe ty)
• Biographies (e . g . Me dicalscie nce s inte rnatio nalwho ’s who )
• Yearbooks (So uth African ye arbo o k, Ye arbo o k 20 0 1 Unite d
Natio ns)
• Address books (The Wo rld o f Le arning 20 0 1 )

10. Audio Visual Media
Othermedia such as audio
cassettes orvideos

11. Electronic Media
Information that is electronically available
•CD Rom programs (e g . He art so unds & m urm urs,
Pro ce duralskills… )
•eBooks (Te xtbo o k o f pe diatrics, The 5-m inute co nsult,
Harriso n’s te xtbo o k o f inte rnalm e dicine … )
•eJournals (Lance t, British m e dicaljo urnal)

12. Unpublished works
• Human sources
• Dissertations /Theses
• Reports
• Grey literature
• Information on the Internet
• Email

13. Human sources
•Lecturers
•Colleagues
•And others

14. Dissertations / Theses
• Research workprepared as part
of an academic course fora
higherdegree
• Copy usually made available in
library of university

15. Research / Progress
reports
Written description of a
completed research project or
an interim progress report

16. Grey Literature
Information that is not
available through the normal
bookselling channels such as
reports, manuscripts and
patents

17. For the retrieval of
information
Secondary information sources to retrieve
information
•Bibliographies to find books (e g . Bo o kfind,
Bo o ks in Print)
•Indexes to find journal articles (e g . So cial
Scie nce s Jo urnal)

18. How to retrieve information in
the library
Use the library catalo g ue to find out
what books, journals, electronic media
have been purchased and are
available in the library
Visit EBSCOHOST

19. Selective reading / Top
Tips
 Skim readings first –do not read word for word, sentence by
sentence, p1, p2,p3,p4 etc at first.
 Keep notes on usefulness of article, highlight useful refs & quotes as
you go along, underline useful data.
 Read accessible articles first –build knowledge & confidence, try the
more challenging articles at a later time.
 Be a ‘critical reader’ –question what you’re reading –find other
arguments which agree/disagree –look for bias, currency of info,
relevance etc. Don’t just accept on face value.
 Read in 50 min blocks- then take a rest for 10-15 minutes. Then
repeat.
 Make the readings work hard for you

20. How much reaching is
enough?
 Q: How do I know when to stop reading?
 A1. When you have adequate to good knowledge of
your topic and you can happily answer the
assignment question.
 A2. When you feel that you are repeating key
information & that your knowledge is overlapping =
you’ve read enough.
 Tip: If you can’t understand a reading or theory – try
to find an easier version of it somewhere else.

21. Evaluating Texts

22. Evaluating Texts
Read the following text and askyourself….
are these expressed facts true?
do you agree with the expressed opinions?
 is the information trustworthy do you think?
does it show any bias?
is the information current?
 is this information reliable?

24. Academic material is not meant to be simply
read. It is meant to be searched and scanned
for essential content.
 Be selective with what you read
 Set a realistic time frame for any reading task.
 Never read without specific questions you want to answer.
 Never start reading at page 1 of the text, but look for the
summary, conclusion, subheadings, etc.
 Read only as much as you need to get the information you
are after.
 Always keep in mind what you need, what is relevant to the
question you are asking the text

25. Effective Reading
 Focus on the Question:
 Search text for answers
 Preview text
 Skim & Scan text
 Use table of contents/ index
 Take notes as you go along
 Summarise what you’ve read
 Take Notes